


Even On Holiday

by Small_Hobbit



Category: Call the Midwife
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-11
Updated: 2017-07-11
Packaged: 2018-11-15 07:30:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,430
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11226216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Small_Hobbit/pseuds/Small_Hobbit
Summary: Another Turner camping holiday, but will everything go smoothly this time?





	Even On Holiday

**Author's Note:**

  * For [badger79](https://archiveofourown.org/users/badger79/gifts).



> My very grateful thanks to my beta thewhitelily.

“This is much better than last time Dad took us camping,” Timothy said.

“Yes,” Shelagh Turner agreed.  “New tent put up ready for us on a proper campsite.”

“No cooking pots with dodgy handles, dating from when Dad was my age.”

“Or borrowed from the Cubs, complete with half the spiders from the Scout hut.”

“Okay,” Patrick Turner held his hands up in mock horror.  “I get the point.  It was worth spending the extra to book somewhere reasonable.”

“And buying new sleeping bags,” Timothy added.

“You do realise we’re going to have to make good use of them now we have them,” Patrick said.

“I think we guessed that,” Shelagh replied.   “Now let’s get the car unloaded, because Angela is desperate to go to the beach.”

***

They hadn’t planned to spend all their time on the beach, but the weather was glorious and despite agreeing they should use their time away in a worthwhile fashion, Shelagh and Patrick found it hard to resist the chance just to relax on the sand, reading and dozing.  Timothy spent time in the sea, and had made friends with some of the other lads on the campsite and joined them in playing beach cricket and other games.  Angela was quite happy building sandcastles and trotting down to the sea’s edge to fill her bucket with water.

It was heading towards tea time part way through the week and they were making their way back to the campsite.  Timothy was complaining at the amount of rubbish they seemed to be carting around and Shelagh was teasing him that he was starting to sound like his father.

“No, no, anything but that!” Timothy exclaimed.

Suddenly they heard a loud thud, followed by screams.  Patrick and Timothy started to run towards the sound, with Shelagh following slightly more slowly, holding tight to Angela’s hand.

When she reached the top of the ridge, Shelagh saw a cart had fallen over.  It looked as though one of the cartwheels had slipped into a gully on the side of the track.  The cart must have started tipping over, causing the passengers to slide out. As the cart continued to fall on its side, some of the passengers had become trapped underneath.  The horse which had been pulling the cart had then bolted down the lane.  

Patrick and Timothy were helping a couple of the other men to lift the cart up.  Once it was level Shelagh heard Patrick say, “I’m a doctor.  If you can manage to pull the cart further away I’ll start checking the casualties.”

There were a couple of grunts of “Okay, doc” and “We can do that.”

“Timothy, run to the car and get my bag,” Patrick said.  “And get someone to ring for the ambulance.”

Shelagh looked round her and saw a young woman, who she recognised as camping with her family in the tent next to theirs.  “I’m a nurse,” she said.  “Could you look after Angela for me, so I can help?”

“Of course I can,” the woman said.  “I’ll take her back to our tent with us.”  She took Angela’s hand and, calling her own two to come, led them off together.

Shelagh joined Patrick where he was kneeling amongst the casualties.  Patrick gave her a quick nod and said, “Timothy’s gone for my bag.  Once he’s back you should be able to bandage the little boy and the woman.  I’ll see to the girl and the man.”

Timothy returned and said, “The Assistant Manager will ring for the ambulance.  He says it may take a while to get here, it’s got to come from a distance.”

“Thank you, Timothy,” Shelagh said.  “Could you get some bandages out of the bag, please.”

Timothy did as she asked, then said, “What do you want me to do?”

Patrick looked up, and Shelagh could see the worry in his eyes.  The man had taken the brunt of the cart on his leg and she could see blood soaking through his trousers, and what looked like some exposed bone.

“Can you remember your first aid?” Patrick asked.  “This girl’s broken her arm.  If you can, use something to splint it and then tie her arm in a sling.”

Shelagh turned back to her own patients.  Her first instinct had been to swap patients with Timothy, but her experience was better directed to the little boy.  He was very distressed and would need calming before she could deal with the cuts to his leg.  Timothy’s first aid training would enable him to deal with a broken arm easier than a panicking toddler.  Shelagh set about comforting the little boy and bandaging his leg, whilst reassuring the mother they were doing everything they could.

Finally they heard the ambulance coming down the track.  Patrick stood up and went over to explain the situation to the ambulance men, who nodded.

“Best if you come with us, doc,” one of them said.

The men got the stretcher out of the back of the ambulance and brought it over.

While they were doing so Shelagh looked at the girl and noted the neat job Timothy had done with the splint and sling.  She said to the mother, “Your daughter will need to go to hospital too, to have her arm set.” 

The woman looked down at the little boy who was clinging to her leg.

“If you were happy your son could stay with me,” Shelagh added.  “I’ve a little girl about his age.”

“Robbie, will you stay with the nurse while I look after Tina?” the mother asked.

The child nodded and took Shelagh’s offered hand.

Patrick came across and spoke quietly to the woman.  “We’re taking your husband directly to the county hospital.  I’m afraid it’s not looking too good.  Unfortunately your daughter needs to go to the cottage hospital instead.  We can get someone to drive her, but …”

“Oh!”  The woman looked from her daughter to her husband as the implications of Patrick’s words sank in.

“I could go with your daughter if you would like,” Timothy said.  He smiled at the girl, who gave him a shy smile back.  “If it would help.”

“Tina, would you go with the young man, while I go with Daddy?” the woman asked.

The girl nodded solemnly.

Shelagh nearly said something to object, but stopped herself.  Timothy was sensible and the woman didn’t need anything else to worry about at that moment.

***

It was nearly four hours later when Shelagh saw Timothy and Tina walking back through the campsite.  She put down the book she’d been trying to read and stood up.

“Are Dad and Mrs Harper back yet?” Timothy asked.

“No, not yet,” Shelagh replied.  “Come into the tent both of you, but keep quiet if you can.  I’ve just got Robbie and Angela off to sleep and I’d rather they didn’t wake up.  How did you get on?”

“It went all right,” Timothy replied.  “Mr Hughes, the assistant manager, drove us, and his wife came too.  And they waited to bring us back, which was nice of them.  Oh, and Mrs Hughes bought some sandwiches, but …”

“You’re still hungry,” Shelagh said.  She wasn’t surprised; Timothy seemed to have hollow legs.  “You can eat whatever there is; just make sure you leave something for your Dad when he gets back.  Tina, would you like anything to eat?”

“No thank you, Mrs Turner.  But could I have a drink please?”

“Of course you can.  I’ll get you some squash.  Timothy, I’m sorry, but would you mind getting some more water?”

“Okay!”

While Timothy was fetching the water, Shelagh said to Tina, “I’m not sure when Mummy will be back, so we’ll make you up a bed here for the moment.  I expect you’re feeling quite tired.”

Tina nodded and sat down on the floor of the tent.  She began to cry, and tried to rub the tears away.  “Timothy will think I’m a real baby for crying,” she said.

“No, he won’t,” Shelagh said.  “He’ll understand you’ve had a very hard day, and you’re now very tired.”

When Timothy arrived back with the water Shelagh said, “I’m sorry to keep you longer from your supper, but could you give me a hand to make up a bed for Tina.  We can use the spare blankets.”

“Of course.”  He smiled at Tina.  “Soon have you sorted.”

It wasn’t long before Tina fell asleep.  Shelagh made Timothy and herself some cocoa, which they took with them to sit just outside the tent.  The day had cooled, but it was still pleasant sitting outside, although the events of the day continued to intrude on their minds.

Suddenly Timothy said, “Can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“Is it wrong that I felt sort of thrilled when I was helping at the accident, and then when I was with Tina at the hospital?  The accident was awful, but at the same time I did feel kind of good.”

“No, I don’t think it’s wrong.”  Shelagh paused, weighing up her words.  “I think it’s a sign you were doing the right thing.  I was really impressed with the way you behaved; you didn’t panic, you just did what was necessary.”

“I was a bit nervous.  And you and Dad were so calm and I didn’t feel like that at all.”

“That’s a combination of learning and experience.  If you ask your Dad I’m sure he will say he didn’t feel as calm as he looked.  I know I wasn’t.”

“The thing is …” Timothy stopped. 

Shelagh waited for him to finish his sentence, but when he didn’t she said, “Carry on.”

“I’ve always said I’d never want to be a doctor, but when I was with Tina in the hospital it was all really interesting, and I wanted to know more.  And they were really complimentary about my bandaging, which was great.  So, I’ve started to wonder whether I might consider being a doctor after all.”

“You know we’d support you in whatever profession you chose.  But your Dad would be absolutely thrilled if you went into medicine.”

“I don’t want to get his hopes up.”

“He’ll be thrilled you’re even thinking about it.  Give yourself a few more days to see whether the feeling lasts, and perhaps talk to him once we’re back home.”

“That’s a good idea,” Timothy said.

***

Timothy had told Shelagh he would stay awake to keep her company until Patrick returned, but had slowly dozed off and was fast asleep by the time the tent flap opened and Patrick came in with Mrs Harper.

“I’m sorry,” Patrick said, “Did I wake you?”

“No, I was only dozing.  Everyone else is asleep though,” Shelagh replied.  She looked from Patrick to Mrs Harper, trying to ascertain how bad Mr Harper’s injuries were, but not wanting to ask.

“Good.  Do you think you would be able to go over to Mrs Harper’s tent with her?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Mummy,” Tina said, blearily.

“Yes, love, I’m back,” Mrs Harper replied.

Tina got to her feet and looked round, clearly slightly confused as to where she was.

“Tina,” Shelagh said, “I’m taking Mummy back to your tent.  Would you like to come with us?”

“Yes!”

“I’ll help you.  If it’s okay, we’ll leave Robbie asleep, and bring him back in the morning.”

Mrs Harper nodded her agreement.  “Thank you.”

Shelagh noticed Patrick looking at Timothy, who was lying in the middle of the tent.  “I shouldn’t worry about him.  He’s sound asleep; I doubt anything will wake him.”

Shelagh took a torch and escorted Mrs Harper and Tina back to their tent.  When she was confident they were okay by themselves she made her way back to her own tent, where she found Patrick eating the remainder of the bread and cheese.

“I’m afraid I’ve eaten tomorrow’s lunch,” he said.

“Don’t worry about it.  We can buy more.  Timothy was hungry when he got back from the hospital, so I told him he could have what he wanted.”

“Is he all right?” Patrick asked, indicating his sleeping son.

“He’s fine.  He coped extremely well.  You should be proud of him.”

“I am.”

“You might like to tell him that.”

“I will,” Patrick smiled ruefully.  Shelagh suspected he was remembering their conversation following Timothy’s exam results.  She had told Patrick that, although Timothy was probably aware his father was pleased with his results, it wouldn’t hurt to make a point of telling him so.

“What was the news about Mr Harper?  His wife didn’t say anything, but she didn’t seem as distressed as I feared she might be.”

“The overall prognosis is good.  They’re not entirely sure whether they can save the foot; it will depend on how well they’ve managed to repair the blood supply, but they’re hopeful.”

“Thank goodness for that.  I wasn’t even sure whether he’d make it at all when the ambulance left.”

“He’s a strong man.  And we were on the scene very quickly, which made a difference.”  Patrick yawned suddenly.  “I’m sorry.  It’s all catching up with me.”

“Let’s get to bed.  Tomorrow morning I’ll get up with the children, you can sleep on.”

***

The following morning Shelagh woke to find Timothy offering them a mug of tea each.

“I thought you might be ready for some tea,” he said.  “I’ve taken Robbie back to the Harpers’ tent; they’re fine by the way.  And I’ve made breakfast for Angela and me.  I thought I’d take her down to the beach to give you time to wake up properly, if that’s okay.”

“Are you sure you don’t mind?” Shelagh asked.

“Not at all.”

“Make sure you’ve got some towels, and her bucket and spade, and …”

“Don’t worry.  She’s sorted herself out.  We’ll be fine for an hour or so.”

Patrick groaned as he sat up and accepted his tea.  “Thank you,” he muttered.

“No problem,” Timothy said.  “Oh, and make the most of it.  That’s the last of the milk.”

Shelagh laughed.  “It sounds like I’d better make my first task to go to the shop.”

Angela appeared beside Timothy.  “Are we going now?” she asked.

“Yes, run along the pair of you,” Shelagh said.

After they’d gone Patrick said, “You don’t have to get up yet.”

“I know.  But if we want any breakfast I’ll have to go shopping soon.  There’s no milk for the cereal and you finished the bread last night.  Ten minutes, and then I’ll get up.”

She lay back down and let Patrick pull her close, intent on enjoying the few minutes they had together.

 


End file.
